January 15, 2008

There are many ways in which parents work toward getting their children and teens to be self-motivated.

Young children receive encouragement and little rewards for appropriate behavior and for doing a job well.

As children grow into teens, the hope is that the adolescent himself will function more independently. This should happen without great deals of direct intervention from mom and dad. That doesn’t mean that Joe Teen now has total freedom. Parents should still take away the car keys for a while if grades drop or curfews are ignored.

Responsible parents supervise and do those things that moms and dads need to motivate kids.